The Day of the Jackal (1973)
Plot summary
Directed by: Fred Zinnemann
Starring: Alan Badel, Edward Fox, Michel Auclair, Terence Alexander
After French President De Gaulle decides to grant independece for Algeria, disappointed generals decide to hire an assasin to kill him. They choose the Jackal, a most professional killer.
The only problem is that the generals are watched, and the plot is found out. The French Police appoints their best detective, Claude Lebel to track down the assasin, of who they only know his codemane, 'The Jackal'.
Plot hole: When the French conclude - incorrectly - that Charles Calthrop is the Jackal, they contact the British authorities and obtain his file photograph from the passport office. The photograph is of Edward Fox in character as the Jackal - but it shouldn't be! The Jackal and Calthrop have no connection. The Jackal never used his identity and did not apply for a false passport in his name. The photo should have been of Edward Hardwicke in character as Charles Calthrop, who appears in the closing minutes of the film. The two actors do not look anything like each other.
Caron: You know, sir, what they'll do to you if you don't catch this man in time.
Lebel: I've been given a job to do, so we'll just have to do it.
Caron: But no crime has been committed yet, so where are we supposed to start looking for the criminal?
Lebel: We start by recognizing that, after De Gaulle, we are the two most powerful people in France.
Trivia: Fred Zinnemann wanted the Jackal to be played by an anonymous actor, so he passed over established stars such as Michael Caine, Roger Moore, and Jack Nicholson in favor of Edward Fox. He later admitted that his decision might have been what contributed to the film's sub-par performance at the box office.
Cubs FanQuestion: I have seen this movie many times, but one question continues to bother me: How did the Jackal plan to escape if he was successful in shooting the president? (He had already removed his disguise).
Answer: When the Jackal entered the parade area, he was disguised as an old army veteran, with one leg and false I.D. When the job was done he would walk out as a younger man with two legs and another set of of false I.D.
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Answer: He would have just slipped away into the crowd, probably with some minor alteration to his appearance. He was a master of disguise and no one knew his real identity or what he looked like.
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